For people without the full use of both upper extremities, such as those suffering from an amputation, paralysis, arthritis, neurological deficits, bone fractures or the like, the task of dressing can be quite difficult as well as very time consuming. Others, such as nursing mothers, athletes, and women whose jobs routinely or constantly occupy their extremities, may be required to remove or adjust their brassieres using only one hand. People without the full use of both upper extremities often have difficulty putting on and taking off garments, and this is particularly true of brassieres. Most brassieres close with fasteners such as hooks and eyes, buttons and buttonholes, zippers, and the like, requiring two hands to readily pull them together during fastening and unfastening and making putting on, removing and adjusting a brassiere very difficult for someone without the full use of both upper extremities. Even brassieres employing hook and loop (VELCRO) fasteners, such as the front-closing brassieres described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,538,502 and 5,032,104, require both hands to simultaneously pull together both sides of the brassiere during fastening. Moreover, even after the brassiere is put on adjustments to the fit may still be necessary during the course of wear, necessitating unhooking, rehooking or making other adjustments that are again very difficult for someone having the use of only one upper extremity or having decreased use of both upper extremities.
Even for those lucky enough to have available someone to assist them, it can still be embarrassing, uncomfortable, and awkward to have to ask for help with such an intimate task as putting on underwear. Moreover, even if some assistance is available, that assistance may not be continuously available throughout the course of wear of the brassiere. Further, in addition to the obvious physical disadvantages of requiring assistance to get dressed and undressed, there is also a psychological disadvantage arising from the decreased degree of independence inherent in not being able to put on one's own underwear. Most people prefer to be as independent as possible regarding self-care. Personal independence is important not only from a standpoint of reducing the need for expensive home health care aid (either from professional services or from family members donating valuable time and other resources) but from a perspective of maintaining a sense of dignity and self-worth. For those people not having the full use of both upper extremities, any increase in personal independence is an opportunity for relieving some of the financial, physiological, and psychological burdens imposed upon them by their condition.
There is therefore a need for a brassiere that may be readily put on, taken off and adjusted independently by a person not enjoying the full use of both upper extremities. The present invention is directed toward meeting this need.